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break

noun

  1. period of time during a shift in which an employee is allowed to take time off
  2. instrumental or percussion section during a song
  3. violation
  4. causation of loss of wholeness
  5. happen, come to light, onset, beginning
  6. the suspension of an action, a break from something, pause, musical interlude
  7. Break into motion, for a goal or from a source location
  8. notable occurance; point at which one's luck turns (bad break, lucky break, etc)
L3866 on Wikidata ↗

verb

  1. To separate into two or more pieces, to fracture or crack, by a process that cannot easily be reversed for reassembly
  2. To divide (something, often money) into smaller units
  3. violate (the law, an oath, trust, etc)
  4. happen, come to light, onset, beginning
  5. break_in: gain entry
  6. separate one entity from another
L3867 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /bɹeɪk/ / [bɹʷeɪ̯k] / /bɹɛk/

noun

Etymology: Clipping of breakdown (the percussion break of songs chosen by a DJ for use in hip-hop music) and see also breakdancing.

  1. A section of extended repetition of the percussion break to a song, created by a hip-hop DJ as rhythmic dance music.

    The smooth criminal on beat breaks / Never put me in your box if your shit eats tapes

verb

Etymology: Clipping of breakdown (the percussion break of songs chosen by a DJ for use in hip-hop music) and see also breakdancing.

  1. To B-boy; to breakdance.

    Let the poppers pop and the breakers break / We're cool, cool cats, it's like that

  2. To brake.

    Breaking heavily, now on a 1 in 39 gradient, the train makes as if to cross the Tamar at once, only to swing sharply to the right, […].